The AI-2E family (UPF0118) is a large family of prokaryotic proteins derived from a variety of bacteria and archaea. Those examined are about 350 residues in length, and the couple that have been examined exhibit 7 putative transmembrane α-helical spanners (TMSs) (Rettner and Saier, 2010). E. coli, B. subtilis and several other prokaryotes have multiple paralogues encoded within their genomes. Herzberg et al. (2006) have presented strong evidence for a role of a AI-2E family homologue, YdgG (renamed TqsA), as an exporter of the E. coli autoinducer-2 (AI-2) (Camilli and Bassler, 2006; Chen et al., 2002). AT-2 is a proposed signalling molecule for interspecies communication in bacteria. It is a furanosyl borate diester (Chen et al., 2002). It is induced in Bacillus subtilis by exposure to rice seedlings (Xie et al. 2015).